Posts tagged HankSteinbrenner at FanHouse

When the Yankees are officially eliminated from the playoffs in a few weeks, there's going to be a lot of blame going around. Fans will blame Alex Rodriguez for never coming through in the clutch, Brian Cashman for never making the deal for Johan Santana, and Hank Steinbrenner for forcing Joe Girardi to move Joba Chamberlain to the starting rotation.

They'll also be blaming the Rays and Red Sox for having superior teams. Still, there's one person who probably deserves more credit for the Yankees demise than anybody else, it's just that most Yankees fans probably don't even realize it. That man is President of the United States, George Bush.

Are Yankees fans also Barack Obama supporters? The Yankees have won eight world championships during Democratic administrations in the past 50 years but haven't won a title with a Republican in office since Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1958. Since then, the Yankees have won titles during the terms of John F. Kennedy (1961-62), Jimmy Carter (1977-78) and Bill Clinton (1996, 1998-2000).

The Rocky Mountain News' Tracy Ringolsby also digs a little further and notices that the Red Sox haven't won a World Series with a Democrat in office since Woodrow Wilson in 1918. So it looks like Yankees fans will have a lot easier time figuring out who to vote for this November than I am.

With the Yankees in serious danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 1993, and general manager Brian Cashman in the final year of a three-year deal, there's been a lot of speculation that Cashman won't be returning to the Bronx next season. With both the Seattle Mariners and Philadelphia Phillies expected to be looking for new general managers this offseason, Cashman's name has been mentioned as a possible replacement there, and possibly even Washington should the Nationals can Jim Bowden.

Of course, none of that will matter if this report out of the New York Post is true. Turns out that even though the Yankees aren't going to make the playoffs, both Hal and Hank Steinbrenner want him back next season.

According to a MLB source, the Steinbrenner family has decided Cashman is the man to lead the organization back from a nightmarish season that will end with the Yankees missing playoffs for the first time since 1993.

Cashman, who last week shouldered the blame for the dismal season, met with Hal and Hank yesterday at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. No contract offer was made but, according to the source, Cashman is aware of the Steinbrenners' wishes.

I would hope Cashman was aware of their wishes, I mean, it's not like the Steinbrenner family has ever been shy when it comes to expressing their feelings.

From The Windup is FanHouse's daily, extended look at a particular portion of America's pastime.

While discussing the Cy Young on Sunday night, Joe Morgan said, predictably, that it was "Brandon Webb's to lose". In fairness, he's probably right. But ... I don't really think he should be. See, the Cy Young is all about perception.

Headshots via Getty Images
Well, not all about perception, but there's a pretty hefty chunk of voting attribution distributed towards the feeling of performance, rather than the strictly statistical discussion of how various pitchers have excelled throughout the season.

If that wasn't the case, then Randy Johnson would have won the Cy Young in 2004, when he very clearly outperformed Roger Clemens on the mound.

In an "ideal" world, there would be someone stuck squarely in the upper left quadrant above -- a pitcher with obviously dominant stats that were publicly recognized (because his team didn't stink). That rarely happens, though, and this year's Cy Young race is, when you really start breaking it down, one of the most intriguing we've seen in a few years.

After all, we have the heavy favorite in Webb, the best pitcher in the National League in Tim Lincecum, the discussion incumbent (Johan Santana), the early season surprise (Edinson Volquez) and a few darkhorses in Danny Haren and Ryan Dempster, the latter which is nothing short of shocking.

See, it's perception that led smart baseball guru types Bill James and Rob Neyer to create a formula entirely devoted to predicting the Cy Young balloting. Not "should win" mind you, but "will win" based entirely on what the voters tend to look for in their winner.

As you can see from the list, Salomon Torres is the eighth most likely pitcher to win the CY. I'm willing to bet he won't get any votes come the end of the year. But a guy who deserves some votes, or at least some Award-worthy buzz, for what he's done since the beginning of July, is CC Sabathia.

Hank Steinbrenner has made no secret about his plans to buy his way back into contention this winter, preferably by picking up a big-name pitcher. But there's a difference between saying you want to sign "a pitcher" and actually naming names -- especially when it's still August and the players in question are under another team's employ. From the New York Daily News:

"Everybody is looking at Sabathia and Burnett, not just us," Steinbrenner said Thursday. "We'll see. I mean, our main concern is, are their arms going to be okay after this season?"

On the one hand, nothing he's saying is revolutionary -- everybody knows CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett will hot items this winter. On the other, each of those two now have even less reason to sign an extension before testing the open market since they know Hank's wallet will be out.

Make no mistake, this isn't the first time Hank has toed the line. He raised the ire of the Twins this past winter by talking about how much he wanted Johan Santana, and if the Twins didn't file a complaint with the commissioner's office, it was probably only because they were holding out hope the Yanks would up the ante and top the Mets' offer. But talking up Sabathia and Burnett while in the same breath suggesting they might be damaged goods? That's not going to make anybody happy.

(Though, really, should we be surprised? It took Hank's dad 14 years [Dave Winfield in 1990; Randy Johnson in 2004] before he finally understood the rule)

It's going to be an odd postseason in baseball this October. Though it isn't official yet, I think it's pretty safe to say that for the first time since 1993 the playoffs will not include the New York Yankees. While this pleases me greatly, for the Yankees and their fans, it probably sucks quite a bit.

Enough to drive them to drinking even. Though if the Yankees are hoping that they'll be able to fulfill their competitive thirst this October with some good old fashioned drinking games, it looks like they're going to need to practice more.

IT would be tough for average Joes to beat a couple of Yankees at baseball, but slamming them in a game of beer pong was no sweat. Last week, Jason Giambi and Joba Chamberlain were celebrating their win against the Kansas City Royals at Southern Hospitality, on Second Avenue, when a table of fans challenged them to a game of the college drinking sport. Our spy said, "The fans gave them a beating. Toward the end Chamberlain and Giambi got really competi tive, but it wasn't enough."

The spy's quote could also be used to summarize the Yankees season.

Not mentioned in the blurb from Page Six? When Hank Steinbrenner came out of nowhere after the game started to tell Giambi that Joba should be going first, not last, then saying nothing when Joba came out of the competition with a sore throwing shoulder resulting from those extra turns.

Joba Chamberlain will make his long-awaited return to the mound today ... when he throws 30 pitches in a carefully-monitored bullpen session. He's only going to throw fastballs and change-ups, and even if things go perfectly, it's still not clear when he'll actually appear in a game.

As speculated last week, Joe Girardi does sound open to putting his young ace back in the bullpen, at least until Chamberlain builds up his arm strength. From Ed Price of the Star-Ledger:

"We've always thought of him as a starter," manager Joe Girardi said Friday. "That's how I still think of him.

"There's not a lot of time to build up, so we might have to be creative how we build him up. ... We're not exactly sure how we're going to do it."

As Price notes, it'd be one thing if Joba were trying to return in the middle of the summer, but with the Yankees' farm clubs approaching the end of their seasons, he simply won't be afforded the opportunity to make a handful of three-, four- and five-inning minor league rehab starts until he gets back into shape. Instead, once he's ready to test his shoulder in a game situation, he'll probably have to be thrown into the fire as a big league long reliever.

With his $200 million team sitting 10 and a half games out of first, Hank Steinbrenner is getting defensive. In a column appearing in the latest issue of Sporting News magazine (and quoted by the New York Post, since the column is on newsstands but not online), Hank boldly proclaims,

"Most of the national media is full of Yankee haters."

"That's why I have to point out the injuries," Steinbrenner writes in his column in the magazine's relauch issue, dated Sept. 1. "Because the media sweep that under the rug and say we're playing poorly.

"But next year, in a new stadium, we'll be much better."

Does the media really hate the Yankees? Well, I use the silliest Derek Jeter I could find, so maybe there's something to do that. But while Hank pouts and talks about 2009, his brother Hal Steinbrenner has quietly reminded the players that there's still a reason to play for this year. He invited Jeter to his weekly meeting with Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi last Friday. From Kat O'Brien of Newsday:

"I just wanted to let [the players know] that ownership absolutely believes that we're in this," Steinbrenner said in a phone interview yesterday. "We absolutely believe we're in this fight, and that we'll be in it until the end.

Did Hal's positive vibes resonate with the team? Well, in the six games since, the Yankees have gone 3-3. A .500 record won't cut it if the Yankees are going to make up the six games separating them from the wild card, but hey, it's better than losing, and it's much more encouraging than simply conceding the season by talking about how great things will be next year.

The above headline is a bit misleading. While Hank Steinbrenner (who has been eerily quiet recently) did actually blame injuries for the Yankees troubles this year, he did not actually guarantee danger and delusion next year. He just merely exhibited delusion across the scope of his quotations, one of which involves the Yankees being dangerous.

"I'm not writing off this season," the Yankees' co-chairman said Tuesday in Tampa, Fla. "They're trying hard to win. There's only so much you can do. They're not supermen."

[...]"I think it's very simple, we've been devastated by injuries," Steinbrenner said. "No team I've ever seen in baseball has been decimated like this. It would kill any team. Imagine the Red Sox without [Josh] Beckett and [Jon] Lester. Pitching is 70 percent of the game. Wang won 19 games two straight years. Chamberlain became the most dominating pitcher in baseball. You can't lose two guys like that."

[...]"We're going to win it next year," he said. "If we need to add a top veteran pitcher, we'll do that. We'll do whatever we need to do. Next year, we'll be extremely dangerous."

I'm sure the Yanks will be scary. C.C. Sabathia, Manny Ramirez, Ben Sheets and Mark Teixeira are all going to be on the market, and I'd be surprised if at least one didn't land in New York.

But is Joba the "most dominant pitcher in baseball"? And does Hank really have zero clue that part and parcel of Wang's 19/year wins came from the redonk offense New York is sporting? And is pitching actually 70 ... oh, nevermind.

Point being, Hank hadn't spouted off at the mouth for a little while, what with the Bombers actually making some headway in the East, and now that it looks like time is creeping on them, he's playing the role of angry, flummoxed meathead. And frankly, I enjoy it.

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups.

Los Angeles Dodgers (58-58) at San Francisco Giants (49-66) 4:05 PM ET

Barry Bonds returned to the Giants last night. Somewhat.

He made a surprise appearance at a celebration of the Giants best outfielders of the last 50 seasons as part of their anniversary season in San Francisco. He made a Schwarzenegger type "I'll be back" proclamation when he stood at the podium, pointed at Joe Torre and said: "You heard me Torre, I beat you before and I can beat you again. I haven't retired. Thank you."

Could Barry Bonds make another surprise appearance at the ballpark today? As a pinch hitter? Somehow, I doubt Torre is worried with the Giants eight and a half behind them.

With the trade deadline right around the corner, our MLB editor brings you the top five rumors every day until July 31.

- The Braves continue to indicate that they won't move Mark Teixeira in hopes of contending for the NL East title, but if the team struggles over the next week, that could all change. Atlanta is already a bit of a longshot to make the playoffs, but two injuries to key players should push them over the cliff and turn them into sellers. Chipper Jones hurt his hamstring again last night in Florida and staff ace Tim Hudson left his start early with ominous-sounding elbow tightness.


If ever there was an omen that it might be time to let go of this season, wouldn't injuries to the team's best pitcher and hitter on the same night be it? Teixeira is certain to leave this winter and if Atlanta holds on to him all it will get is a pair of early draft picks. They stand to get much better talent in a deadline deal, even considering Teixeira's rental status.

- I got a chance to see A.J. Burnett's rain-shortened start last night in Baltimore. There were plenty of scouts in attendance, though some of them were probably there in hopes of seeing Orioles closer George Sherrill. Burnett has good raw stuff -- a fastball he gets to 95 mph with ease and a tough curveball in the low-80s. Still, Orioles hitters made good contact on him. He's a very good, but fragile No. 2 starter, who could help a number of contenders, but his uncertain contract status continues to make potential suitors cautious. Don't put too much stock into the Roy Halladay rumors, Burnett is still the most likely to get moved of any of Toronto's pitchers.